AUSTIN - The Texas Veterans Land Board recently announced a statewide campaign to bring Valentine’s Day love to the nearly 1,000 Veterans residing in state-ran nursing homes. The mission is to bring awareness from Texans that although the Veterans have had to isolate for nearly a year due to COVID-19, they are not forgotten by their nearby communities.
Sport climbing, surfing, skateboarding, karate, baseball, and softball are all new sports for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics (baseball and softball making a return).
Maybe the International Olympics Committee should consider chili and cornbread cookoffs as well for future games. With McAllen Mobile Park giving a super-small sampling, if the results are anywhere near as tasty, it will surely be a hit and a long-standing event where winners will fiercely battle for the gold medal.
What glorious weather we are having...not too hot, not too cold...it is just right. Yep, it is just right for being outdoors and enjoying our beautiful South Texas. The gurus of the travel industry say that the plus side of the pandemic has brought more and more travelers into eco-tourism and enjoying the great outdoors.
The Hidalgo Watercolor Society Annual Exhibit will open next weekend, February 12, and run through March 6. The exhibit will be displayed at the Upper Valley Art League (UVAL) at 921 E. 12th St. in Mission.
The exhibit features art made by Winter Texans and local artists. A “Meet the Artists” event will be held on Saturday, February 13th, outside, with gallery viewing from 4 to 6 p.m.
Gallery hours are Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Masks and social distancing are required for all events.
For more information, call the gallery at (956) 583-2787.
When going into Weslaco, there is one prominent structure that kind of calls out and is noticed by all that travel down South Texas Blvd. or Business 83 – El Tinaco Tower. The tower stands at 100 feet tall on six concrete pillars. Upon its completion in 1941, the tower was proclaimed a marvel of modern construction. It received a Texas Historical Landmark designation in 1982. There was even a working Tower Theatre in one of the buildings at the base of the tower. But, the tower isn’t the only thing interesting about the City of Weslaco.
By Susan Thomas, Bit-O-Heaven Activity Director
Bit-O-Heaven RV and MH Resort residents in Donna like to help the local community when possible. This season the park held their Second Annual Reverse Advent Calendar event for charity. The concept is to buy the food item on the list for each day of the month of December and have a basket of food ready to deliver by Christmas to a needy family. It is really easy to do and most residents just buy all the recommended items at one time and fill two tote bags per family. You can usually purchase all the items at Dollar Tree for $25-$30.
If you drive along the expressway, now I-2, heading south from Pharr – which I coverd last week – you will find Pharr’s neighboring cities, that all share a school district with, San Juan and Alamo.
The most distinct thing about San Juan is the Our Lady of San Juan del Valle shrine. It was designated a national shrine in 1998 and the following year, Pope John Paul II designated it as a minor Basilica. The history of the shrine begins in 1920, when Reverend Alfonso Jalbert, OMI, built a small wooden chapel in San Juan as a mission church of St. Margaret Mary Church in Pharr.
